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Regular readers of this blog will already be aware that I adore the Tawa restaurants.

Each Tawa that opens offers something slightly different, with Tawa Kitchen giving us traditional Indian cuisine and Tawa Bites providing Indian street food on the go. Both are equally exciting takes that I feel Cambridge sorely needs but with the opening of Tawa Lounge in Histon, I was absolutely fascinated to see where they go from here.

Tawa Lounge continues with this tradition by offering a range of international dishes inspired by gastro pub cuisine. The aim is to fuse classic South-East Asian dishes with the relaxed comfort of a traditional pub.

This may be their most ambitious and interesting project yet!

Having taken over the old Phoenix pub in Histon, they have picked an absolutely perfect location. They still have the bar open and operational throughout the day and evening that offers a selection of locally roasted coffee, beers, ciders, wine, cocktails, and alcohol-free beer, meaning you visit Tawa Lounge for a quick pint as well as a meal.

Visiting the bar (which is as the front of the restaurant as you enter) I was quite taken by an alcohol-free beer called ‘Freedam’. I have often struggled with alcohol free beer, as I have always thought that they never quite managed to pull off the trick of tasting like a typical beer but this was one of the better examples I have had in my time.

They even have their very own Tawa lager, made by Norfolk brewery ‘Lacons’, which I thought was quite charming and novel.

They have done a great job transforming this restaurant from the ‘Histon Smokehouse’ into their very own identity. It is relaxed, warm, and modern. There are still a few things to do in the restaurant but they have managed to do an incredible amount in the short time it has been open, especially considering the size of the place!

You can see why it is called Tawa Lounge due to the casual yet stylish interior, especially at the bar towards the front of the restaurant. It’s suitable for formal and relaxed evenings alike.  They have worked hard to keep the character of the old pub by keeping the wooden beams but have also raised the ceiling in the main dining area to give a more spacious feeling. It is a restaurant I could really spend some time in rather than just eat and leave. It was also reassuring to be able to see into the open kitchen while the chefs prepared my food.

♿ Tawa deserve massive credit for making the restaurant significantly more accessible for wheelchair users. Since taking over the restaurant they have removed 17 steps, added ramps, and offer disabled toilets.

There is a selection of snacks for people drinking in the bar which go beyond the usual HP nuts and Walkers crisps. Expect things like dried banana chips, chilli rice crackers, nuts, and olives. This was a refreshing change and actually felt like there was some sort of nutrition in them. 

Starters:

The starter menu has approximately 12 options available that mostly hover around the £6.50-7.50 mark. 

Unlike the other Tawa restaurants, there is a more diverse range of dishes, from ham hock croquettes to fishcakes. Don’t worry though, as there are still some classic Indian dishes available, such as kale chaat and lamb kebabs. Everything looked fantastic which resulted in us ordering…well, everything! 🤷‍♂️

One of the stand out dishes of the evening was the kale chaat. This is a dish that you will also find at the other Tawa restaurants too but I am glad it is, as it is one of my favourites. This beautifully presented dish is light, refreshing, and thanks to the kale, has a wonderfully crispy texture which is perfectly complimented by the yogurt.

The robata chicken is a Japanese dish that is traditionally served on a stick. The Tawa style of robata chicken is served with fennel and an orange salad in harissa vinaigrette. I found the chicken to be juicy and tender, and despite being prepared on a high heat it was not remotely dry and had a lovely succulent texture.

The vegetable samosa is one of their many vegan friendly options and is served with tamarind and coriander sauce. It is also one of the cheaper dishes, coming at a reasonable £5.20.

Like everything else, you’ll notice this is beautifully presented with a lovely golden colour, a bright green salad and a sprinkle of pomegranates to give it that extra colour. I really enjoyed mine for its lovely crispy outer shell and soft spiced centre. Fantastic!

We also tried another vegan friendly option – the chickpea falafel. This was presented with hummus and avocado salsa along with warm flat bread for dipping. I do not order falafel often but I enjoy it from time to time but I found the falafel to be a little dry.

The hummus was really good and the freshly made (and still warm) flat bread was just what I needed on a cold winter’s night. It was lovely and soft and was versatile to go with anything else I was eating too.  The avacado salsa with pomegranates really added a freshness to the taste and colourful pop for the eye.

The cod, scallion and sago fishcake is served with tartar sauce on a sago crackers. They were absolutely fantastic and just like everything else, were visually pleasing, if not slightly unusual looking. They are presented in handy portion size which makes them great for sharing. As you would expect, the tartar sauce complemented the cod really well. I enjoyed biting into these, as the creamy sauce on top was followed by a warm soft middle and ended with a crispy sago cracker, which gave it an exciting diverse texture.

One dish has left me dreaming about it ever since visiting Tawa Lounge, the ham hock and chicken croquettes. These are served with truffle cream and parmesan cheese in a portion of four.

The croquettes are crispy on the outside and creamy on the inside, with a rich and savory flavor. The truffle cream adds a touch of luxury and richness with a subtle earthy flavour while the parmesan cheese provides a salty, umami punch.

Or, to put it simply, they are lovely and gooey and yummy. The absolute pinnacle of cold winter comfort food! 😍

The spiced Tawa lamb kebabs were a perfect example of what lamb can be. They were cooked on charcoal then served with tzatziki and pickled onions. The lamb was so tender and succulent that no matter how many were on the plate, it simply wasn’t enough. The tzatziki and pickled onion worked well together, both offering a tangy flavour but with the tzatziki cooling down the acidity of the pickle giving a much more balanced flavour for the lamb.

By looking at the menu, you may notice that the team at Tawa have done small nods to the history of the pub where they now reside. One example of this is their Smokehouse chicken wings, in honour of Histon Smokehouse. I really like this idea, as it means people who may miss the restaurant can still enjoy a part of it. Change doesn’t need to mean missing out.

The wings come in a choice of Korean BBQ, hickory barbeque, and buffalo sauce. There is also a vegan option in the form of cauliflower. I am unable to resist Korean BBQ, as it is one of my favourites (and not something that is widely available in Cambridgeshire), so I decided to go for that.

Tawa’s take on Korean BBQ is slightly different to my previous experiences with Korean style chicken wings. It is lighter, crispier, and covered in a drizzle of sauce. I thoroughly enjoyed them and I would certainly order them again but a part of me missed the sticky and juicy wings slavered in Korean BBQ sauce. I would love to hear people’s take on this in the Cambridge Foodies community.

And last but by no means least, we had the salt and pepper squid with roasted garlic sauce. As mentioned above, this is Tawa’s little tribute to ‘The Phoenix’, the Chinese restaurant that was here for nearly twenty years prior to Histon Smokehouse.

Anyone who dines with me frequently will know that I am funny with seafood and squid is by no means my favourite but this may be one of the best dishes of the starter range!

A lime is provided to give it a juicy zesty pop which really brings it to life. The batter is nice and crispy and I could really taste the squid which is something I often find is not the case with batter. If you are like me and unsure about squid but are interested in giving it a go then I recommend visiting Tawa Lounge, as they knock it out of the park. If you don’t like it here then you don’t like squid at all.

Mains:

At this point I was bursting at the seams. I was just about ready to leave and waddle back to my car until I was reminded that the mains were still due to come out. I’m not sure how I did it but somehow I found a way to continue eating. Let it never be said that I don’t make sacrifices for you readers 🤣

The mains menu has a selection of burgers, ribs, and steaks (sirloin and ribeye). For more information on their burgers, check out my visit to Tawa Bites here. Prices start at £15.50 and go all the way £26 (though most mains are below £20, anything over is a steak).

I was keen to sample their butter masala, one of their more Indian influenced dishes. This is grilled chicken served in a masala sauce, with cumin rice, paratha, and a poppadom. There is also a vegetarian option with paneer cheese.

The chicken was beautiful and I thoroughly enjoyed using the paratha to mix everything together into a wrap. This isn’t supposed to be a curry but they provide a jug of masala sauce on the side, just in case that’s what you want. The poppadom was nice and crispy and the rice was rather ordinary but executed without fault.

I was lucky enough to try their braised feather blade steak. This is known for being a flavorful cut of meat with good marbling. It can also be tough but really comes to life if slow cooked. Luckily, this was the case and the steak simply fell to pieces when I pulled at it with my fork. There’s no need for a steak knife here!

This is served along with celeriac puree, gratin potatoes, green beans, all in a Turkish coffee sauce. The cream from the gratin potatoes and the rich Turkish sauce complimented each other beautifully, creating a complex flavour with a velvety texture.

I was delighted to see a chicken katsu curry on the menu. This is a popular Japanese style curry served along with sesame rice and oriental slaw in citrus ponzu.

I have often found that a Japanese katsu curry can be served in quite a small portion but the chicken here is very generous. I thoroughly enjoyed the oriental slaw which added some much needed colour and a satisfying crunch to the bite, as well as making the dish more balanced as a meal. I thought this was a strong take on what a katsu curry can be. If I had to pick, I would have liked to see slightly more sauce.

A general consensus around the table this evening was that the baked salmon was one of the most striking highlights of the evening. As we all know, salmon can be uninspiring if not cooked correctly but the team at Tawa absolutely knocked this out of the park!

The salmon is served in a shellfish bisque with warm potato and a Moghrabeih salad, this dish was visually stunning, colourful, and vibrant. The salmon was succulent and the shellfish bisque pulled everything together to create a rich creamy flavour.

After trying all the mains at once, this was the dish I found myself coming back to and picking at more and more. I highly recommend it!

And last (but by no means least) was the Tawa lamb pepper fry. This was right up my street with a bold peppery flavour and a soft succulent ‘melt in your mouth’ style lamb. It is served just like the chicken butter masala with cumin rice, paratha, poppadum, meaning you can eat it as a curry with rice or wrapped up in paratha.

Desserts:

We were treated to a few desserts towards the end. Both were beautifully presented, colorful, and delicious.

Conclusion:

Tawa Lounge feels like a natural evolution of both Tawa Kitchen and Tawa Bites. I am deeply fond of all three restaurants but Tawa Lounge offers a more robust selection of dishes from all over the world that will be able to please even the fussiest of eaters.

There are numerous gluten free, vegetarian and vegan options too, so there is truly something for everyone and I don’t just mean in terms of cuisine. Tawa Lounge is also a bar with a decent selection of beers, cocktails, and wines, so you can pop in any time and relax in their stylish yet casual surroundings and have a swift half.

The staff are excellent and simply can’t do enough for you…even while I was being an irritating foodie taking photos of the dishes while they were trying to do their job. 🤣

There is still a bit of work to do around the restaurant but it is early days. There are a few exciting things coming up including an upstairs area that I look forward to seeing.

I look forward to returning and exploring more of the menu and enjoying one of their Tawa beers.

Thanks for reading!